The present invention relates to information processing device and method for inputting information by holding and rotating the overall device with one hand.
In a portable information device such as an electronic pocket notebook, a pocket telephone, a pocket beeper or the like, a button, a pen, a touch panel or the like has been conventionally used as an information input means. For example, in an electronic pocket notebook, the body of the device is held by one hand while a pen is held by the other hand, and a touch panel on the device is operated with the pen to input prescribed information.
Further, in a pocket telephone, numeral keys for inputting a telephone number and functional buttons corresponding to the respective functions are provided to perform prescribed operations. In a pocket beeper or the like, an indispensable minimum number of functional buttons corresponding to the respective functions are provided, and these buttons are operated.
However, in the case of a portable information device such as a electronic pocket notebook for inputting information by using a pen and a touch panel, the device body provided with the touch panel must be held by one hand while the pen is held by the other hand, and thus both the hands must be used for the operation. Therefore, it has a problem that the operability thereof is difficult in some cases. For example, it is difficult to operate the portable device while baggage is held by one hand.
Devices such as the pocket telephone have a problem in that numeral keys for inputting a telephone number occupy a large space, and thus they prevent a compact design.
The present invention has been implemented in view of such a situation, and has an object to provide an information processing device which can reduce the number of operation buttons and can be readily handled even by one hand.
In order to attain the above object, an information processing device according to one aspect to one aspect of the present invention includes means which is provided in a portable-size housing and adapted to display information; detection means which is provided in the housing and adapted to detect the displacement of the attitude of the housing due to rotation of the whole housing; instructing means which is provided and operated when display of selected information on the display means is instructed and when desired information is selected from the displayed selection information; and processing means which is provided in the housing and adapted to display on the display means the selection information corresponding to the displacement detected by the detection means in accordance with the operation of the instructing means, and to perform the processing relating to the selection information which is selected from the selection information displayed on the display means by the instructing means.
Another aspect of the present invention includes an information processing method for use in an information processing device comprising a portable-sized housing, and display means for displaying information, detection means for detecting the displacement of the attitude of said housing due to rotation of the whole housing and instructing means for performing predetermined instructions which are provided in the housing, wherein the method includes steps of displaying on the display means the selection information corresponding to the displacement detected by the detection means, and when desired information is selected from the selection information displayed on the display means by the operation of the instructing means, performing the processing relating to the selected selection information.